Semiconductor Process Vessel Cleaning Gas Mixture
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing dry cleaning methods for semiconductor process vessels face challenges in balancing the etching rate of deposits with the need to minimize damage to quartz components, as higher temperatures increase etching rates but also risk damaging the quartz, while lower temperatures reduce etching efficiency.
Innovation Solution
A method involving the supply of a mixture of fluorine-containing, oxygen-containing, and hydrogen-containing gases at pressures below atmospheric pressure for thermochemical cleaning, which increases the etching rate of deposits while reducing quartz damage by generating reactive species that facilitate efficient removal without plasma.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If the temperature within the process vessel is increased to increase the etching rate of deposits, then the etching rate increases, but the damage to quartz components increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the chemical composition parameters of the cleaning gas by introducing oxygen-containing gas and hydrogen-containing gas in addition to fluorine-containing gas. This chemical parameter change enables effective deposit removal at lower temperatures, resolving the contradiction between etching rate and quartz damage.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent uses a composite gas mixture containing fluorine-containing gas, oxygen-containing gas, and hydrogen-containing gas. This composite approach creates synergistic effects where the combination of gases produces more effective cleaning at lower temperatures than any single gas alone, thus increasing etching rate without damaging quartz.
2Object-affected harmful factors
If the temperature within the process vessel is lowered to reduce damage to quartz, then the damage to quartz decreases, but the etching rate of deposits decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the chemical composition parameters of the cleaning gas to include oxygen-containing gas and hydrogen-containing gas alongside fluorine-containing gas. This enables the system to maintain high etching rates at lower temperatures by enhancing the chemical reactivity of the gas mixture.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces thermal energy (temperature) with chemical energy (reactive species from gas decomposition). Instead of relying on high temperature to drive the etching reaction, the system uses chemically active species generated from the decomposition of the cleaning gas mixture, allowing effective cleaning at lower temperatures.
3Reliability
If wet cleaning methods are used to remove deposits, then the cleaning effectiveness is achieved, but the maintenance time and productivity are reduced due to taking out reaction tubes
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces mechanical wet cleaning (physical removal requiring disassembly) with a chemical field-based cleaning method. The cleaning gas is supplied into the process vessel to chemically remove deposits in situ, eliminating the need to take out reaction tubes and significantly reducing maintenance time while maintaining cleaning effectiveness.
Solution Approach 2:
The cleaning system is designed to perform self-service cleaning within the process vessel itself. The reaction tube and other components clean themselves by exposure to the cleaning gas atmosphere, eliminating the need for external manual cleaning operations and reducing maintenance downtime.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
This approach effectively enhances the etching rate of deposits while minimizing damage to quartz components, allowing for efficient cleaning without the need for a plasma source, thus reducing manufacturing costs and improving process vessel maintenance.
Implementation Method 1
supplying a cleaning gas into the process vessel heated and kept at a pressure less than an atmospheric pressure to remove a deposit including a thin film adhering to the inside of the process vessel through a thermochemical reaction
Implementation Method 2
the etching rate of a deposit may be increased as the temperature within a process vessel is increased when a cleaning gas is supplied into the process vessel
Data Source
AI summary
A method of manufacturing a semiconductor device includes supplying a process gas into a process vessel accommodating a substrate to form a thin film on the substrate and supplying a cleaning gas into the process vessel to clean an inside of the process vessel, after the supplying the process gas to form the thin film is performed a predetermined number of times. When cleaning the inside of the process vessel, a fluorine-containing gas, an oxygen-containing gas and a hydrogen-containing gas are supplied as the cleaning gas into the process vessel heated and kept at a pressure less than an atmospheric pressure to remove a deposit including the thin film adhering to the inside of the process vessel through a thermochemical reaction.